UK is seeing the highest inflation in FMCG products across Europe, suggests latest data released by NielsenIQ which shows that FMCG prices across Europe are 6.9 percent higher than they were a year ago, with the UK seeing a 7.5 percent rise.
Across 32 European markets, more than eight FMCG categories out of 10 showed increasing inflation rates during the 12-week period to 24 April. Perishable food (+8.8 percent), ambient (shelf-stable) food (+8.7 percent) and pet food (+8.6 percent) were the top three categories with the biggest price rises in the European markets surveyed.
Year-on-year inflation is now over 10 percent higher in several markets across Northern and Eastern Europe, and the trend appears to be lasting. In the short term, NielsenIQ found that prices are still increasing, with Turkey (+69 percent) and Ukraine (+22 percent) leading the way compared with the same period they were a year ago.
The data also reveals that while there was an increase in promotional activity on FMCG products in 2021 (28.2 percent of sales were made via promotions vs 25 percent in 2020), this has not been sustained in 2022 (27.1 percent) due to inflation. 58 percent of European countries reduced the percentage of items on promotion in the latest 12 weeks period.
Earlier this week, NielsenIQ revealed that while inflation was helping to lift category growth across most of the store, volume sales were in decline in all FMCG categories in UK supermarkets during the four week period ending 18 June. Rising prices appear to be leading shoppers to consider cheaper meal alternatives, with sales increasing for frozen poultry (+12 percent), rice and grains (+11 percent), canned beans and pasta (+10 percent), gravy/stock (+9 percent) and canned meat (+9 percent).
